A Happy Ending
by Kristen3
Summary: Frasier and Charlotte's relationship is falling apart, so the elder Dr. Crane makes a last-minute trip back home to learn a lesson in love from his younger brother. One-shot.


**Author's Note: **Thanks to Melinda (carylfan10), whose stray mention of Frasier and Charlotte in a story was enough to start the wheels turning for this.

As Frasier got into the cab, he couldn't believe he'd done this. He looked out the window at the sights of his home city of Seattle. It had been almost a year since he'd left to follow Charlotte to Chicago. At the time, he'd thought it would be a great adventure, not unlike Niles and Daphne's romantic flight from her wedding years ago. But reality had hardly lived up to what he'd imagined. Getting settled in a new city, as well as living with a woman, had taken a toll on his life. They'd been fighting so much lately. What scared him the most was that he was starting to have flashbacks to his days with Lilith. When he realized that, he'd booked the first flight to Seattle.

The cab arrived at the Montana, and Frasier quickly paid. He looked at the building, wondering what his brother and sister-in-law would say when they saw him. No matter what their reaction might be, Frasier was eager to see them. He missed Niles more than he'd expected. And Daphne's constant updates on David's development made him wish he could be there to see his nephew grow up.

Daphne picked David up from his playpen. The baby seemed confused as to why he had to stop playing. Daphne was about to explain that it was bedtime, but she heard the doorbell ring. It made her nervous for a moment; she wasn't expecting company. A visitor at this hour had to be bad news. But she shook off her worries. She opened the door and was surprised at who she saw. "Frasier!"

Frasier laughed and hugged her tightly. "You look beautiful," he said. "And David is precious."

Daphne grinned. "Thank you. I think he gets it from his father. Why didn't you call and tell us you were coming? Niles and I would've picked you up!"

Frasier shrugged. "It was sort of a last minute thing." He found that he could not take his eyes off David. "Can I hold my nephew?"

"Of course." Daphne handed the baby over. Immediately David grabbed for Frasier's nose.

Daphne couldn't help laughing. "Lately he does that to everyone. Let me go and tell Niles you're here." She'd been in such a state of shock, she hadn't even thought about Niles. She hurried off to his study, leaving her son in his uncle's arms.

Frasier could hardly believe this was the same baby he'd seen a few months ago. He'd changed so much. His once-dark hair was now much lighter. A definite sign that the Crane genes were in there somewhere. Suddenly, Frasier thought of his own son. Frederick was beginning to think about college. Lilith was set on him staying close to home by attending Harvard. But Frasier wasn't concerned about his son's educational future. All that mattered was that Freddie was a good boy who would certainly be successful in whatever field he chose. He hoped the same would one day be said of David.

Just then, Niles entered the room. "Frasier." His eyes widened in disbelief at the sight before him. In a matter of seconds, the brothers were shaking hands, and Daphne was just barely able to take David back from Frasier before the two men hugged tightly.

"I've missed you," Niles said.

Frasier nodded. "I know. I missed you both." Suddenly Frasier remembered when he'd first met Daphne. Back then he'd thought she was strange, with her accent, and her so-called psychic powers. But now, he couldn't imagine his life without her.

Daphne looked at her brother-in-law and knew at once that his mind was elsewhere. "So, Frasier, me powers tell me this isn't just a social visit. Something's on your mind."

Frasier hung his head. "You're right, Daphne. Moving in with Charlotte...it's not working out."

"Oh, Frasier," Daphne said. She knew only too well how long it had taken him to find a woman to love. Before she could say anything more, David began to fuss and squirm in her arms. "I guess someone's ready for bed. I'll just go and put him down, and then we can talk, all right?"

Frasier nodded his agreement. Niles stepped over to where his wife stood. "Goodnight, son. Sweet dreams." He kissed David's cheek.

Daphne left the room.

"Why don't we sit down?" Niles said to his brother. They made their way over to the dining table. The two men sat face to face. For a moment, Frasier was transported back in time, to their countless conversations over a table at Cafe Nervosa. It was easy enough to find a Starbucks in Chicago, but he knew in his heart he'd never find another Nervosa. Just as he'd never feel as welcome in a bar as he had at Cheers.

"I just can't get over it," Frasier said, breaking the silence between them. "All those years, you kept asking me for advice about Maris or Mel. And now, here you are, happily married. This time, I'm the one who needs _your _advice."

Niles nodded. "I'm listening." He grinned, unable to resist quoting his brother's former catchphrase.

Frasier sighed. "Charlotte's matchmaking business has been picking up. She's out almost every night, meeting clients. I'm busy, too, of course, setting up my practice. It seems like we barely have any time for each other. And what little time we _do_ have, we spend fighting."

"Making new adjustments is hard. Remember what it was like when Dad first came to live with you?"

Frasier nodded. "Yeah, it wasn't exactly a picnic."

"Right," Niles replied. "But now you and Dad are closer than ever. It just takes time."

Frasier nodded once again. "I figured you'd say something like that. But the more we argue, the more it reminds me of Lilith. I don't want to go through that again."

Niles was about to offer some more words of advice to his older brother when Daphne came back down the stairs. "David's sound asleep," she informed them. Niles rose at once to kiss his wife when she came near him. She took the chair next to him.

Frasier smiled. "I can't believe you two. You really are in love."

Daphne smiled. "Yes, Frasier. Happy endings _do_ exist."

"I know. That's what I hoped Charlotte and I would have. A happy ending like yours."

"A happy ending doesn't just happen," Niles said. "It takes time. And a lot of work. Trust me, Frasier, the worst thing you can do is to give up too soon." He reached over to take hold of his wife's hand. "You don't want to let the person you love get away. Otherwise, you can spend the next decade or so wishing you could go back and undo what you've done."

Daphne smiled, touched by his words. "I know you don't really believe in me powers, but I think you and Charlotte could be happy. Niles and I had our share of obstacles in getting together, but now here we are. Once you make up your mind that you love a person, there's nothing you can do about it. All of a sudden, all of those things you were worried about don't matter. You'll do anything just to be with the person you love."

Frasier thought for a moment. Most of the things he and Charlotte had fought about were trivial. Who cared if her work sometimes kept her out later than expected? Sure, it was tough to start his life all over again, for the third time. But he'd dealt with hard things before. He thought of what he used to tell his listeners back when he was on the radio. Practically every day, someone would call in asking whether a relationship was worth saving. Most of the time, he'd convinced the caller that love was worth fighting for.

If he needed any proof that his advice had been correct, he saw it right in front of him. There could never be a truer picture of love than Niles and Daphne. It had been their love which inspired him to get on a plane a year ago. He'd been so excited to start a new life with Charlotte. Somewhere along the way, he'd lost sight of the goal. But it wasn't too late. They hadn't called it quits yet. "Thank you."

Niles and Daphne shared a glance. "You're welcome," Daphne replied.

"I don't know if Charlotte and I can work things out or not. But if I don't try again, I'll never know. After Diane left me, I was scared of getting hurt again by Lilith. If I'd let that stop me, I wouldn't have Freddie. Who knows what I could be missing out on now?"

"Right," Niles said, thinking of his young son asleep upstairs. "You know that you will always be welcome here, but this isn't your home anymore. Your life is in Chicago now."

"I know." Frasier knew he'd be calling Charlotte first thing in the morning. And then he'd get on the first flight he could get. No way would he let his happy ending get away!

* * *

The following afternoon, Frasier was preparing to leave for the airport. Seeing his family again had been wonderful, and the thought of saying goodbye tore at his heart.

"Goodbye, Frasier," Daphne said, hugging him. "Niles and I will be crossing our fingers for you. It's a shame you couldn't stay and see your father, but I suppose he'll understand."

Frasier nodded. "I'm going to stop by his place on my way. I can't thank you both enough. I never thought I'd be learning from my little brother, but I guess now I have."

Niles shook his brother's hand. "It was good seeing you. Don't stay away so long. David's growing up awfully fast, and we want his uncle to be a part of his life."

A smile crossed Frasier's face at once. "Oh, I will be." He walked over to David's playpen, picking the child up. Surprisingly, David didn't seem to mind the sudden interruption. "Oh, David." Frasier fell in love with his nephew all over again. "I hope you always listen to your mommy and daddy. They're pretty smart people."

"Bye-bye." David waved.

"It looks like the apple didn't fall far from the tree," Frasier said as he handed David back to Daphne. Finally, he took a deep breath and turned to leave.

For a moment, Niles and Daphne simply stood there in silence. They both felt Frasier's absence acutely. But David's smile warmed their hearts, filling the void his uncle had left.

"I hope someday Frasier can find his happy ending. It won't be easy, but if he ends up even half as lucky as I am right now, it'll be more than worth it." Niles was nearly overcome with emotion as he looked at the two most important people in his life.

Daphne kissed her husband then. "Me powers tell me that your brother's going to be just fine."

Niles nodded. "We Crane men may not always make the right choices, but somehow, we end up right where we belong."

**The End**


End file.
